Everyone turned to see Mr. Wells walking into the meeting.
“If it wasn’t you, Richard, who was it?” Samantha asked again.
Mumbling could be heard around the table as people tried to figure out who sent the check.
“Does it matter who sent it?” Greg asked. “We have it and now we need to finalize things for next weekend.”
“Greg’s right. I need to hear from all the chairpersons what they still need to get for their section of the party. We have all the stockings and the fillers and have completed most of the shopping off the kid’s lists. Lily and I will be shopping in Larsen on Wednesday and Greg has offered to let us use his delivery van to bring home the rest of the bikes that are being held for us at the department store.”
“All the food donations have been verified and will be delivered by ten in the morning to the lodge,” Wes stated.
“I know Judy and Tom head the decorating committee. Does anyone know if they are all set?” Jewel inquired.
“I talked to Judy right before we came here,” Greg relayed. “She was going to Larsen to stay with Tom at the hospital tonight. The diner will not be open tomorrow. She wanted me to tell you that they still need a few things and she would get a list to you before you go to Larsen on Wednesday.”
“Great. Saturday, at the Stroll’s conclusion we will all meet at the lodge to set up the party. Gifts will need to be wrapped and stockings stuffed. Can everyone make it?” Jewel asked, looking around at the group.
There was a chorus of yeses.
“Tabby and Greg, did you get all the games together that we had on the original list?”
“What we couldn’t find online, Greg built. There are fourteen games that will be available for the kids to play. I ordered all kinds of small prizes, candy, and candy canes to give out when they play,” Tabby said. “It was all delivered to my shop already.”
“Great! Jenny, did you make out the volunteer schedule so that we can post it Saturday night at the door?”
“It’s all done. I have found while calling and firming up time slots that most people are going to stay all day and work wherever they are needed,” Jenny replied.
“I think that is everything. All the new people who are here to tonight for the first time can report to Jenny after the meeting closes to see where and when she needs you to work. If anything comes up during the week call me on my cell phone; you all have my number.”
Mrs. Puckett, the sheriff’s wife, stood up and rapped on the table.
“Let’s not forget what happened at the diner today. Judy may need our help while Tom is recovering. Check in on her over the next couple of days and see if there’s anything you can do to help her out.”
“Do they know who did it yet?” Samuel Benson asked.
“No, not yet. But, the cameras on the outside of the Shots All Around Liquor Store caught the robber on film. My husband sent the CD to Larsen Forensics to see what they can determine there.”
“I hope they catch whoever was responsible. I moved here because my mother so loved this place and I hate to see what is happening in this town. My wife and I moved from the city to get away from things like this,” Samuel said.
“Whipper Will Junction is definitely changing,” Mr. Wells acknowledged.
“Okay, I will see everyone on the Stroll. Meeting is adjourned,” Jewel announced.
Tabby climbed in the front seat of the van. Through the windshield, she could see the Bensons arguing over something next to their car. Pulling a Gladys move, she rolled down the window to see if she could hear what they were saying.
“Your mother didn’t live here long enough to “so love this place”. If people really knew who you were they wouldn’t be so fast to accept you, would they?” Sally insisted. “My mother was right all along; you don’t have a backbone.”
“My mother did love this place. That was a long time ago and I didn’t have anything to do with what happened; I was only three years old. I didn’t even find out about it until my mom died,” Samuel blasted back. “That is in the past and I am trying to start a new life here; a quiet life. If you don’t like it in Whipper Will Junction, then divorce me and leave. I don’t care one way or the other.”
“How dare you?” Sandy started, and then stopped talking when she realized half the committee members were listening in on their argument. “Take me home, NOW!”
“Well, that was interesting,” Gladys Twittle commented as she walked by the open window in the van.
“Poor Samuel. That conversation will be all over town when Gladys takes her gossip throne on the first stool at The Tilted Coffee Cup in the morning,” Greg said. “Anyone up for The Outdoor Café seeing as we didn’t have dinner at the meeting?”
“If you don’t mind, I’d really like to go home. I have weekly bookkeeping to do for the store and I’d like to get out my Christmas decorations and start to decorate.” Jenny answered.
“Home it is for Miss Jenny,” Greg said, starting the van. “What about Miss Tabby?”
“I threw a batch of chili in the crockpot this morning while I was cooking my jelly. Why don’t we just head to my place and eat there?” Tabby suggested.
“Sounds good to me. I’ll take homemade cooking any day,” he said, heading out of the parking lot.
They were met at the door by the cats, who were loudly stating their protest of being fed a late supper. Greg went to stretch out on the couch while Tabby fed her roommates and dished out the chili into extra-large soup mugs. He turned on the television and then closed his eyes.
“I think my conclusions were right all along after hearing that conversation between Sandy and Samuel tonight,” Tabby said, grabbing two beers out of the refrigerator.
“What did you come up with?” Greg asked.
“I concluded that Samuel Benson was really Carl Bender’s son and his name had been changed. I think he came back here to find the missing money,” Tabby stated, setting two placemats on the coffee table in front of the couch along with the beers.
“I didn’t get that feeling listening to him tonight. He sounded like he really wants to make a go of it here,” Greg said, disagreeing with her. “Like he said, he can’t be held responsible for something that happened when he was three.”
“Do you think he really came back here because his mother loved Whipper Will Junction?” Tabby asked, placing the chili mugs down and sitting next to Greg on the couch.
“I don’t know. Why don’t you ask him?” Greg suggested.
“I think I will,” Tabby replied.
“I was only joking. He’s not going to admit to you who he is or was. Let it go,” Greg said.
“I can’t. Mrs. Piper recognized him that night at the diner and might have died because of it. I have to find out if he killed her to protect his past or the fact that he is back here looking for the money.” Tabby answered, picking up the mugs and handing one to Greg.
“You need to be careful and let the sheriff check these things out,” Greg admonished. “Dave Tullinson was found in a ditch and Tom got assaulted today. You don’t know if the robbery was tied into this whole mess or not. Please, let it go.”
“I’ll be careful, I promise,” Tabby replied, scooping up a spoonful of chili. “I know what we are missing; tortilla chips.”
Greg shook his head as he watched his girlfriend rummage through the cabinets for the bag of chips. He knew she would never change. He would just have to do his best to be there to protect her when he could. Solving mysteries were what she thrived on; it was a big part of who she was. He loved her anyway.
CHAPTER 9
* * *
Monday night, Greg and Tabby spent the night at Jenny’s helping her decorate her tree. Bea came after work bringing eggnog and Christmas cookies with her for the festivities.
The tree was massive once the branches relaxed and fell into place. Jenny started supper while Greg set the tree in the stand and gave it a good healthy drink of water. He hung the lights and garland o
n for Jenny who was too short to reach the top section. They all put the ornaments on the tree together. Jenny didn’t like tinsel. She felt it hid the ornaments so none was placed on the tree.
From inside, the tree blocked the entire front window. From outside, the tree looked stunning. When they had come back inside from viewing the tree from the sidewalk, Jenny gingerly walked out with a white paper bag from her bedroom. She reached inside and handed her mom the first surprise.
Inside the white tissue paper was a dainty angel, dressed in white, holding a heart that said “Mom” in gold letters on it. Every year mother and daughter exchanged ornaments. Jenny was so thankful that she was here with her this year to do it.
Tabby was handed the next ornament. It was a special ornament that Jenny had ordered a month ago. A hand blown, white glass life preserver, with the words “S.S. Tabby” in red, rested in Tabby’s hand. She looked at Jenny who had tears in her eyes.
“I wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for you. You saved my life and I will never ever be able to repay you. We have been best friends since kindergarten and I couldn’t have picked a better person to be at my side until I grow old. I love you, Tabby, with all my heart,” Jenny said, just barely able to get out the last few words.
One of the few times in her life, Tabby had nothing to say.
Jenny, Tabby, and Bea all had tears in their eyes. Greg sat in the corner watching everything unfold. He never understood what it meant to have a best friend, until now.
Jenny walked over to Greg and handed him a gift bag. He was surprised at receiving a gift, but he opened it up and held up a gold key ornament.
“You were the key to making Tabby’s plan work for my rescue. Without you, she couldn’t have done it. This key represents two things. First, you opened your house in Larsen to us so that we could safely hide from Alex. Second, it represents the key to both my heart and my mom’s heart. You will always be considered a member of our family,” she said, hugging Greg.
The room was quiet as each person reflected on what had been said in the last few minutes. Bea excused herself and could be heard crying in the bathroom. Greg walked to the kitchen to grab a beer.
“This is beautiful,” Tabby finally whispered.
“I meant every word I said,” Jenny insisted.
“I know you did and I love you just as much,” Tabby said, hugging her best friend.
“Good, now let’s eat supper,” Jenny said smiling, tears gone.
“I’ll set the table while you get your mom out of the bathroom,” Tabby said, drying her eyes.
The somber mood was left behind in the living room. Laughter rang out while they ate dinner together as Bea told Greg story after story of the trouble the two friends had gotten into while growing up. They finished the evening with coffee and cookies in front of the newly decorated tree.
“I’ll see you Wednesday night,” Jenny told Tabby as she closed the apartment door.
Greg walked Tabby home pulling her closer as they walked.
“You and Jenny have something really special,” he said.
“Yes, we do,” Tabby agreed. “Yes, we do.”
They walked in silence taking in the Christmas scenes that surrounded them. When they reached Tabby’s apartment door, Greg took both of her hands.
“I want our relationship to be that special. I will never hurt you or let you down in any way. I will always be there for you. My dad told my mom those same words many years ago and he kept his word right up until the day he died.”
“Our relationship is special, in its own way,” Tabby whispered.
They kissed and then Greg walked away into the falling snow. Tabby knew she had a one-in-a-million guy and she would do everything she could on her end to make their relationship as special as Greg wanted it to be. She entered her apartment with a happy heart.
The snow kept customers away for the next couple of days except for the hardcore Christmas shoppers who loved being out in snowstorms. Thelma stayed home, and Janice stayed in the store by herself while Tabby cooked upstairs. The smell from her Holiday Jam filled the apartment and wafted down the stairs to the shop.
“Are you almost done?” Janice yelled up the stairs. “The snow is getting worse and I’d like to head home.”
“I’ll be right down,” Tabby answered.
Tabby hit the bottom stair and Janice was standing there with her coat on.
“Are you sure you don’t want to spend the night in my extra room? We’re putting up the tree tonight and having Chinese food,” Tabby asked her.
“No, I appreciate the offer, but I’d rather be at home in case the power goes out again. Besides, I’m off tomorrow and I’d rather be at my own place in my PJs. Thanks anyway.”
“Okay, just be careful going home,” Tabby warned her employee. “See you Friday.”
Business was slow, so Tabby opened the door for the cats to come down to the shop. Ghost climbed up to his favorite spot next to register and went to sleep. Marmalade roamed around the store looking for something to play with. Tabby crunched up a piece of paper into a ball and threw it to her. It kept the cat amused for a whole five minutes.
Tabby sat at the register working on her Christmas list. She hadn’t done a speck of shopping except for the ornaments that she would give Greg and Jenny tonight when they came to help decorate and bake.
Jenny’s ornament was a pink swirled, glass bowling ball with her name etched into it. They had been on the same bowling team every year since high school and the ornament looked just like Jenny’s ball that she used for the league.
Greg’s ornament was a miniature gas light lantern, identical to the ones that lined the walkway to the restaurant where they had their first date. He would know the significance right away, she hoped.
She only had seven people on her shopping list; her mom, Greg, Jenny, Bea, Janice, Thelma, and Mr. Wells. That wasn’t so bad. She should be able to get all her shopping done in one afternoon. The problem was, what to buy each one. She didn’t have a clue where to start.
As she sat there racking her brain what to buy, the doorbell sounded. Mr. Wells came through the door, his white hair made even whiter with the accumulating snow on top of his head. He stomped his feet at the door, brushed off his coat, and shook the snow off his head. Tabby stifled a laugh while watching him.
“How’s my girl doing today?” he asked as he advanced to the register,
She quickly hid the list under the counter that had his name included on it so that he wouldn’t see it. Ghost woke up and meowed a greeting to the town elder.
“Calypso says hi to you and your sister,” he said, scratching the cat behind the ears.
“Hello, Mr. Wells. What are you doing out in this kind of weather?” Tabby asked, standing up to give him a hug.
“I had to come to Doc Holden’s for my annual physical. He wanted to cancel it, but I said no. I wanted to get it over with so that I don’t have to think about it for another year.”
“Are you going to be able to get home okay?”
“Heck, yea! They have already plowed the roads once and I made it here before they had plowed them at all. Listen, I stopped in because I need your opinion on something. Do you have a minute?”
“It’s not like the customers are overrunning the place, Tabby laughed, what’s on your mind?”
“Samuel Benson came to see me the other day. He said you recommended he come see me about renting the small shop two doors down from here for his new realty business.”
“Yes, I did tell him that,” Tabby confirmed.
“What do you think about him? His character, I mean.”
“Truthfully, I don’t know a lot about him. Why?”
“I’m thinking about turning over my rentals and sales to him. I’ll be leaving for Florida shortly and I need someone I can trust while I am not here.”
“I don’t know, Mr. Wells. I have some unconfirmed suspicions regarding Samuel Benson.”
“Are you referring to the f
act that he is Carl Bender’s son?” he asked, catching Tabby by surprise.
“How do you know about that?”
“He told me. He wanted everything up on the table about his background.”
“I thought he was his son. My only concern is, did he really come back to find the missing money, or did he come back to start a new life like he claims.?”
“The way he explained it to me was he just found out who he was when his mother died. She had written a letter to be given to him upon her death that explained everything. He grew up a Benson and that was all he knew.”
“Maybe his mother had taken the bank money with her when she left Whipper Will Junction in 1994 and changed her name when Carl got arrested,” Tabby suggested. “How does he have all this money to put an offer in on Mrs. Piper’s house and start a new business?”
“When his mother died, she left a sizeable insurance policy in her son’s name. I believe he said three hundred thousand. He gave me the insurance company’s name so that I could check out his story.”
“Okay, that might explain the money angle, but why the interest in the house on Ball Road if he doesn’t want to look for the missing bank money?”
“Samuel told me his mom was the happiest she had ever been living in that house. She loved the town, even though her husband didn’t let her socialize with the locals at all. Samuel remembers playing hide and seek in the graveyard with his mom during the day. His dad would sit up in the solarium watching them, but never participated. He loved his dad, but wasn’t close to him. He never understood why his dad went away one day and never came back, until he read the letter.”
“The newspapers at the time said no one even knew he was married or had a child. It came as a complete shock to the town when they found woman’s clothes and a room done in blue in the house after he was arrested.”
“Personally, I think one of the accomplices got away with the money. It has never been found in all the years since the robbery and I think it is long gone. Samuel wants the house because his mom loved it. He wants to settle here and make Whipper Will Junction his permanent home.”
JAMMED WITH MURDER Page 7
